NOTE TO READERS: KHN's First Edition will not be published Feb. 17. Look for it again in your inbox Feb. 18.
Kaiser Health News: Facts Vs. Fears: Five Things To Help Weigh Your Coronavirus Risk
The news about the novel coronavirus in China grows more urgent daily. The number of related deaths is now greater than 1,300, while tens of thousands of people have been infected — most of them in China. People returning to the U.S. from China are quarantined for 14 days. It can be frightening to think about the threat, but public health officials in this country constantly remind people that the risk of the disease here is low. Still, scientists have more questions than answers about important issues surrounding the coronavirus, now officially named COVID-19. Here's some help in understanding the unknowns and evaluating the risks. (Szabo, 2/14)
Kaiser Health News: Would 'Medicare For All' Cost More Than U.S. Budget? Biden Says So. Math Says No.
During the Feb. 7 Democratic presidential debate, former Vice President Joe Biden once again questioned the price tag of "Medicare for All," the single-payer health care proposal championed by one of his key rivals, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. Biden argued that the plan was fiscally irresponsible and would require raising middle-class taxes. Specifically, he claimed, the plan "would cost more than the entire federal budget that we spend now." (Luthra, 2/14)
Kaiser Health News: Changing Clocks Is Bad For Your Health, But Which Time To Choose?
Changing over to daylight saving time — a major annoyance for many people — may be on its way out as lawmakers cite public health as a prime reason to ditch the twice-yearly clock-resetting ritual. The time change, especially in the spring, has been blamed for increases in heart attacks and traffic accidents as people adjust to a temporary sleep deficit. But as legislatures across the country consider bills to end the clock shift, a big question looms ahead of this year's March 8 change: Which is better, summer hours or standard time? (Hammill, 2/14)
Kaiser Health News: KHN's 'What The Health?': Live From D.C. With Rep. Donna Shalala
President Donald Trump's proposed budget for the fiscal year that begins in October proposes big cuts to popular programs, including Medicaid and the National Institutes of Health. Although those cuts are unlikely to be enacted by Congress, both Republicans and Democrats are likely to use the budget blueprint as a campaign issue. (2/13)
Kaiser Health News: 'An Arm And A Leg': What We've Learned And What's Ahead For The Show
In this bonus episode of "An Arm and a Leg," reporter and colleague Sally Herships ("Planet Money," "Marketplace") takes a turn in the host's chair. The conversation covers what we have learned so far and what's ahead for the show.You'll hear stories culled from the cutting-room floor, including an early adventure from the medical-bill ninja profiled early on in Season 3. (Weissmann, 2/14)
The New York Times: China Expands Chaotic Dragnet In Coronavirus Crackdown
China's leaders expanded a mass roundup of people possibly sickened with the coronavirus on Thursday, widening their dragnet well beyond the epicenter of the outbreak to at least two more cities in what the government has called a "wartime" campaign to stamp out the epidemic. But the campaign, first announced last week in the city of Wuhan, already has been marred by chaotic conditions that have isolated vulnerable patients without adequate care and, in some cases, left them alone to die. The expansion of the decree to "round up everyone who should be rounded up" in the Wuhan area of central China has deepened the nation's sense of anxiety. (Qin, 2/13)
Reuters: China's Hubei Province Reports 116 New Coronavirus Deaths
The death toll from a coronavirus outbreak in China's Hubei province has risen by 116, with the total number of cases up by nearly 5,000, the province's health commission said on Friday. The commission did not disclose the total number of deaths from the newly identified virus, which stood at 1,310 on Thursday. (2/13)
The New York Times: China Is Tracking Travelers From Hubei
The number of cases surged again in Hubei Province, the epicenter of the epidemic. The authorities are taking a high-tech approach to figuring out who has visited there. (2/13)
Reuters: China Says 1,716 Health Workers Infected By Coronavirus
China National Health Commission Vice Minister Zeng Yixin said on Friday that 1,716 health workers have been infected by the coronavirus and six of them have died as of Tuesday. Zeng, at a press conference about protecting medical workers, said the number of infected medical staff is increasing. (2/14)
The New York Times: A Timeline Of The Coronavirus
The coronavirus, which surfaced in a Chinese seafood and poultry market late last year, has spread to 24 countries, killing more than 1,000 and sickening tens of thousands of people in a matter of weeks. The World Health Organization has declared the situation a global health emergency. Here's a timeline of what we know so far about the outbreak. (Bryson Taylor, 2/13)
The Wall Street Journal: China Ousts Senior Officials As Beijing Seeks Distance From Outbreak
China ousted two top Communist Party officials in Hubei province, the center of the coronavirus outbreak, demonstrating Beijing's disapproval of how local officials handled a threat that has mushroomed into an epidemic killing more than 1,300 people and halting business across the country. ... Chinese leaders doled out similar punishments during the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, nearly two decades ago, when China's health minister and Beijing's mayor lost their jobs. But in those cases, top Communist Party leaders were largely left in place. (Woo, 2/13)
The New York Times: How The Coronavirus Numbers Changed So Sharply
The number of cases and deaths in the coronavirus epidemic in China jumped sharply on Thursday as the authorities there changed how they keep track of the disease, and not, primarily, because of any change in the shape of the outbreak. There is still a lot of uncertainty about the true numbers — as with any new disease — and that will continue for the foreseeable future. Underscoring that point, hours after China revised its figures, the World Health Organization put out a lower set, saying that for now, it would not change the way it counts. (Perez-Pena, 2/13)
Reuters: Dying A Desperate Death: A Wuhan Family's Coronavirus Ordeal
There were no doctors, nurses or medical equipment at the Wuhan hotel converted into a temporary quarantine facility for suspected coronavirus patients when brothers Wang Xiangkai and Wang Xiangyou arrived two weeks ago. The next day, Xiangkai, 61, woke to find that Xiangyou, 62, had died. The Wangs are among tens of thousands of families devastated by the coronavirus in Wuhan, where the medical system has been overwhelmed by the outbreak, despite massive reinforcements and two speedily built new hospitals. (2/14)
Reuters: Solo Lunches And Masks: Chinese Returning To Work Grapple With Coronavirus
Chinese government employee Jin Yang returned to work in Beijing this week to find his usual workplace rules upended as China battles a coronavirus epidemic. His office has banned the practice of eating lunch in its canteen with colleagues, in favor of boxed meals, packaged in house and eaten at desks, he said. "It's anything but normal," the 28-year-old told Reuters. (2/14)
The New York Times: U.S. Supports Aid To North Korea For Fighting The Coronavirus
The United States said it would approve humanitarian assistance to North Korea to help international aid agencies fight the coronavirus there, amid fears that the impoverished country may be hiding an outbreak. North Korea has not reported any cases of the new coronavirus. But in the past week, some South Korean news reports, citing unnamed sources within the secretive North, said there had been deaths that were suspected to be related to the virus. The reports could not be confirmed. (Sang-Hun, 2/14)
The Associated Press: US Says It's Ready To Help North Korea Combat Virus
The United States expressed deep concern about North Korea's vulnerability to the outbreak of a new virus and said it was ready to support efforts by aid organizations to contain the spread of the illness in the impoverished nation. North Korea has moved to strengthen quarantines and other preventive measures to protect itself from the COVID-19 illness that has killed hundreds and sickened tens of thousands in China, North Korea's neighbor and closest ally. (2/13)
The New York Times: Some Wuhan Evacuees Ask Why They Aren't Being Tested For The Coronavirus
When 195 Americans, including diplomats, were evacuated from Wuhan, China, last month, they were tested for the coronavirus on arrival at a California military base. Health officials swabbed the throats and noses of everyone in the group — the first to be evacuated from Wuhan — and they were relieved when all of their tests came back negative. But as more government-arranged flights evacuated Americans from China in the days that followed, the federal health authorities adopted a new protocol: Only people who showed symptoms of illness during a 14-day quarantine period would be tested. (Jordan and Bogel-Burroughs, 2/13)
The Associated Press: US Announces 15th Virus Case, This One In Texas Evacuee
U.S. officials on Thursday announced the country's 15th confirmed case of the new coronavirus — an evacuee from China who had been under quarantine in Texas. The patient, who had been flown to Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio last week, is now in isolation at a hospital and was reported in stable condition. The infection was confirmed through a Wednesday night lab test , making the person the first coronavirus patient in Texas. (2/13)
CNN: Novel Coronavirus 'Is Probably With Us Beyond This Season, Beyond This Year,' CDC Director Says
As an outbreak of a novel coronavirus has swept through Hubei province, China, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been preparing for its worst case scenario -- a widespread outbreak of illnesses in the United States... "We don't know a lot about this virus," [CNN's Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta] said. "This virus is probably with us beyond this season, beyond this year, and I think eventually the virus will find a foothold and we will get community-based transmission." (Andone and Shoichet, 2/14)
Reuters: Trump Says China Is Handling Coronavirus 'Professionally'
U.S. President Donald Trump praised China over its handling of the fast-moving coronavirus outbreak in an interview that aired on Thursday, adding that the United States was working closely with Beijing. "I think they've handled it professionally, and I think they're extremely capable," Trump said in a podcast broadcast on iHeart Radio. (2/13)
Reuters: U.S. Disappointed With China's Coronavirus Response: White House Adviser
The United States is "quite disappointed" with China's response to the coronavirus outbreak, a top White House adviser said on Thursday, criticizing Beijing for a lack of transparency. Speaking to reporters at the White House, National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow said the Trump administration had thought there was better transparency than there has turned out to be. (2/13)
Los Angeles Times: In The San Gabriel Valley, Coronavirus Fear Is In The Eye Of The Beholder
Marta Ayala and Chong Taing, both Rosemead residents, couldn't see the threat of the coronavirus more differently. You can see it on their faces. While walking out of Superior Grocers supermarket in El Monte, Ayala's face scrunched in annoyance as she spotted an Asian customer wearing a white medical mask coming from the opposite direction. Despite hearing about the fast-spreading illness, to the 64-year-old Mexican immigrant, the mask is an overreaction that just stokes alarm. (Campa, 2/13)
The New York Times: Coronavirus 'Hits All The Hot Buttons' For How We Misjudge Risk
Shortly after the University of Washington announced that the school's fourth suspected case of the new coronavirus had turned out negative, two professors, one of public policy and the other of public health, held a small dinner for students and faculty members. Like everywhere else on campus, and in much of the world, the coronavirus was all anybody could talk about. But one of the attendees, a public health student, had had enough. Exasperated, she rattled off a set of statistics. (Fisher, 2/13)
The New York Times: 'Thermometer Guns' On Coronavirus Front Lines Are 'Notoriously Not Accurate'
It has become an iconic image of the coronavirus outbreak in China: a masked official aiming what appears to be a small white pistol at a traveler's forehead. For weeks, this ominous-looking device has been deployed at checkpoints across China — tollbooths, apartment complexes, hotels, grocery stores, train stations — as government officials and private citizens screen people for fevers in an effort to prevent the spread of the deadly coronavirus. Sometimes described as a "thermometer gun," the device is equipped with an infrared sensor that can quickly measure surface temperature without making any contact with a person's skin. (Yaffe-Bellany, 2/14)
The Wall Street Journal: How Many People Might One Person With Coronavirus Infect?
When an infection erupts the way coronavirus has exploded in Wuhan, China, and elsewhere in the world, public-health experts try to gauge the potential for an epidemic—or, worse, a pandemic—by calculating the pathogen's basic reproduction number. The figure, generally written as R0 and pronounced "R naught," is an estimate of how many healthy people one contagious person will infect. Because viruses spread exponentially, a few cases can quickly blow up to an overwhelming number. An R0 of two suggests a single infection will, on average, become two, then four, then eight. (McGinty, 2/14)
The Wall Street Journal: What We Know About The Coronavirus, From Symptoms To Treatment
Concern is high about a dangerous new coronavirus behind an epidemic in China and illnesses in 24 other countries. The number of people sick with or dying of a viral pneumonia caused by the virus has continued to rise in the epicenter of Hubei Province, China, despite a quarantine of some 60 million people and other measures to stop it. Worries about the potential global impact have interrupted travel and business and disrupted supplies of some goods—including supplies needed to fight the epidemic. Scientists and public-health officials are learning more all the time about the virus. It has been named Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2, or SARS-CoV-2. The disease it causes is called Covid-19. (McKay, 2/13)
The Associated Press: Virus Renews Safety Concerns About Slaughtering Wild Animals
China cracked down on the sale of exotic species after an outbreak of a new virus in 2002 was linked to markets selling live animals. The germ turned out to be a coronavirus that caused SARS. The ban was later lifted, and the animals reappeared. Now another coronavirus is spreading through China, so far killing 1,380 people and sickening more than 64,000 — eight times the number sickened by SARS. (2/14)
Reuters: Gilead Drug Prevents Type Of Coronavirus In Monkeys; Raises Hope For China Trials
An experimental Gilead Sciences antiviral drug prevented disease and reduced the severity of symptoms in monkeys infected with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), an infection closely related to the fast-spreading coronavirus that originated in China, a study published on Thursday found. The results, reported in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, raise hope that the drug, remdesivir, currently in clinical trials in China, might be effective against the new virus that has infected some 60,000 people globally, and killed more than 1,300, mostly in China. (2/13)
Reuters: Fake News Makes Disease Outbreaks Worse, Study Finds
The rise of "fake news" - including misinformation and inaccurate advice on social media - could make disease outbreaks such as the COVID-19 coronavirus epidemic currently spreading in China worse, according to research published on Friday. In an analysis of how the spread of misinformation affects the spread of disease, scientists at Britain's East Anglia University (UEA) said any successful efforts to stop people sharing fake news could help save lives. (2/13)
The New York Times: As Passenger Angst Grows, Japan To Let Some Off Ship, But Fewer Than Hoped
For a moment on Thursday, John and Carol Montgomery thought they might be departing early from the cruise ship quarantined in Yokohama, Japan, where new cases of the coronavirus have been confirmed almost daily. Japan's health minister said a few categories of passengers could spend the remainder of the two-week quarantine ashore. The Montgomerys thought they qualified because they share a cabin without windows or a balcony and Mr. Montgomery, 68, has diabetes. (Rich, 2/13)
Reuters: Passengers On Ship Turned Away Over Virus Fears Disembark In Cambodia
Passengers on a cruise ship that spent two weeks at sea after being turned away by five countries over coronavirus fears started disembarking in Cambodia on Friday. The MS Westerdam, carrying 1,455 passengers and 802 crew, docked in the Cambodian port town of Sihanoukville on Thursday. It had anchored offshore early in the morning to allow Cambodian officials to board and collect samples from passengers with any signs of ill health or flu-like symptoms. (2/14)
The Washington Post: Economic Fallout From China's Coronavirus Mounts Around The World
The economic casualties from China's coronavirus epidemic are mounting as Asian and European auto plants run short of parts, free-spending Chinese tourists stay home and American companies brace for unpredictable turbulence. That's just the start of a financial hangover that is expected to linger for months even if the flulike illness is soon brought under control, economists and supply chain experts say. The Chinese epidemic's aftereffects will probably cause the global economy to shrink this quarter for the first time since the depths of the 2009 financial crisis, according to Capital Economics in London. (Lynch, 2/13)
The Wall Street Journal: Coronavirus Outbreak Slams Iran's Embattled Economy
Iran's crude-oil sales have been battered by a sudden downturn in demand from its last big trading partner, China, following the deadly coronavirus outbreak, U.S. and Iranian officials said, a blow that lands as the Islamic Republic faces the risk of an economic collapse. In addition to declining oil sales, turmoil in China also is disrupting the supply of spare parts and cheap goods Tehran needs for its factories and bazaars. (Faucon and Lubold, 2/13)
Reuters: Factbox: Countries Evacuating Nationals From China Coronavirus Areas
A growing number of countries around the world are evacuating or planning to evacuate diplomatic staff and citizens from parts of China hit by the new coronavirus. Following are some countries' evacuation plans, and how they aim to manage the health risk from those who are returning. (2/14)
Reuters: Vietnam Quarantines Rural Community Of 10,000 Because Of Coronavirus
Vietnam has quarantined a community of 10,000 people near the capital, Hanoi, for 20 days because of fears the coronavirus could spread there, two local officials told Reuters on Thursday. The rural commune of Son Loi, in the northern Vietnameseprovince of Vinh Phuc, 44 km (27 miles) from Hanoi, is home toll of the 16 coronavirus cases in the Southeast Asian country,including a three-month-old baby. (2/14)
The Associated Press: Health Concerns Meet Politics Amid Taiwan's WHO Exclusion
Taiwan's exclusion from the World Health Organization is pitting health concerns against geopolitics during the current crisis over the new illness known as COVID-19. Taiwan has called repeatedly for it to be allowed to participate in WHO, from which it has been barred by China. So strong is China's diplomatic pressure that Taiwan can no longer take part in the organization's annual World Health Assembly, even as an observer. (Jennings, 2/14)
The New York Times: Veterans Affairs, A Trump Signature Issue, Is Facing Turmoil Again
As President Trump enters his re-election year, his administration's focus on the nation's veterans has emerged as a centerpiece of the campaign. But the agency tasked with caring for more than nine million former service members, a department he claims to have transformed, is showing signs of disarray. The mysterious firing last week of the deputy secretary of veterans affairs was only the latest in a string of incidents that have shaken the second-largest cabinet agency in the government as it embarks on ambitious changes to veterans health care. (Steinhauer, 2/13)
The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Indian Health Service Doctor Indicted On Charges Of Sexual Abuse
A U.S. Indian Health Service doctor was indicted Thursday on charges of sexually abusing his Native American patients at a health center in South Dakota, deepening a crisis over the handling of sexual misconduct that has consumed the federal agency for a year. The doctor, Pedro Ibarra-Perocier, a family medicine physician, was indicted on eight counts of sexual abuse involving four different adult patients at the agency's clinic on the Yankton Sioux Reservation, in the town of Wagner in the southeastern corner of the state. A lawyer for Dr. Ibarra-Perocier declined to comment. A U.S. District Court clerk in Sioux Falls said he had pleaded not guilty. (Weaver and Frosch, 2/13)
Politico: McConnell Forces Senate Votes On Anti-Abortion Bills
Mitch McConnell on Thursday set up two votes on anti-abortion bills for later this month, a move intended to excite conservatives and put a vulnerable Senate Democrat in a difficult position. The Senate majority leader teed up votes on a bill banning abortions after 20 weeks and also the "Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act." Both bills have been rejected by the Senate in recent years after failing to clear the chamber's 60-vote threshold. But forcing votes on them in an election year could help boost enthusiasm on the right for keeping the Senate in Republican hands. (Everett, 2/13)
The Associated Press: More Than 1,000 Gather In Richmond To Oppose Abortion Bills
More than 1,000 people rallied at the Virginia Capitol on Thursday, protesting legislation advancing in the Democratic-controlled General Assembly that would ease restrictions on abortion access. Speakers urged the crowd that gathered in a steady rain to pressure lawmakers to vote against bills that they say would undo regulations that protect pregnant women. They encouraged attendees to join anti-abortion advocacy groups to push back against Democrats who retook control of the General Assembly in November, and they vowed to unseat members of the new majority. (2/13)
Los Angeles Times: Here's Where Democratic 2020 Candidates Stand On Gun Control
As Democratic voters settle in to decide which candidate to support in the presidential primary contest, they'll notice two things about their gun control policies. First, the Democratic Party as a whole has tilted to the left on pushing for increasingly expansive federal gun control policies. Second, there's not much broad-stroke distinction between the candidates' views on how far to go. The 2020 Democratic presidential candidates agree on big gun control policies, including banning the sale of semiautomatic rifles such as the AR-15. (Pearce, 2/14)
The Associated Press: In 2 Years, Florida 'Red Flag' Law Removes Hundreds Of Guns
A 23-year-old man who posted on Facebook, "I don't know why I don't go on a killing spree." A West Palm Beach couple who shot up their home while high on cocaine. A 31-year-old Gulf Coast man who pointed a semiautomatic rifle at a motorcyclist. All four Florida residents had their guns taken away by judges under a "red flag" law the state passed three weeks after a mentally disturbed gunman killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland two years ago Friday. (2/14)
The Associated Press: Feds To Track How Private Medicare Info Gets To Marketers
A government watchdog plans to launch a nationwide probe into how telemarketers may be getting hold of seniors' personal Medicare information, a red flag for potential fraud and waste. An official with the Health and Human Services inspector general's office told The Associated Press the audit will be announced next week. It would follow a narrower probe which found that an electronic system designed for pharmacies to verify Medicare coverage was being used for searches that appeared to have nothing to do with filling prescriptions. The official spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of a formal announcement. (2/14)
The Associated Press: CEO Of Company That Operates 4 Hospitals Under Investigation
The CEO of a health care company whose holdings include a hospital in St. Louis is under civil and criminal investigation, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Thursday. The newspaper cited a court filing in which the U.S. Trustee's office accused Americore Holdings' CEO Grant White of mismanagement and said he "has not operated the hospitals in a manner that is consistent with public safety and welfare." (2/13)
Reuters: Trans Patients May Struggle To Access Breast Cancer Screening
At a time when a growing number of transgender Americans are getting gender-affirming treatments to make their bodies match their identity, breast imaging centers may not be changing to meet their needs. Approximately 1.4 million U.S. adults identify as transgender today, double the number a decade ago, researchers note in the Journal of Breast Imaging. And while it's still not clear how gender-affirming treatments like hormones or surgery might impact breast health, most doctors agree that transgender people have unique screening needs. (2/13)
Reuters: High Lifetime Number Of Sexual Partners Linked To Increased Cancer Risk
People who have had 10 or more sexual partners during their lifetime may have increased odds of being diagnosed with cancer, a new study suggests. Women, in particular, had nearly twice the risk when they had 10 or more past partners compared to when they had one or none, researchers report in BMJ Sexual & Reproductive Health. (2/13)
The Associated Press: By 2060, A Quarter Of U.S. Residents Will Be Over Age 65
By 2060, almost a quarter of all U.S. residents will be over age 65, and life expectancy will reach an all-time high of 85 years, according to new reports the U.S. Census Bureau released Thursday. The growth in life expectancy in the U.S. over the next four decades is expected to be slower than it was in the four previous decades. (2/13)
The Associated Press: Weight Loss Drug Belviq Pulled From Market Over Cancer Risk
The maker of a weight loss drug pulled it from the market Thursday at the request of federal regulators, who said it posed a slight increased risk of cancer. Japan's Eisai Inc. said it was voluntarily withdrawing the drug, Belviq. However, the company said in a statement that it disagreed with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's interpretation of new data on the drug's safety and still believes Belviq's benefit outweighs the risk. (Johnson, 2/13)
The New York Times: Is Coffee Good For You?
We've come a long way from the cans of Folgers that filled our grandparents' cupboards, with our oat milk lattes, cold brews and Frappuccinos. Some of us are still very utilitarian about the drink while others perform elaborate rituals. The fourth most popular beverage in the country, coffee is steeped into our culture. Just the right amount can improve our mood; too much may make us feel anxious and jittery. (MacKeen, 2/13)
Reuters: Air Pollution May Aggravate Nasal Suffering With Colds And Seasonal Allergies
People who get rhinitis - an inflamed or congested nose - from colds or allergies may feel much worse if they're exposed to high levels of air pollution, a recent study suggests. Rhinitis usually involves some combination of congestion, sneezing, nasal irritation and sometimes a reduced sense of smell, and it affects up to half of the world's population, the study team writes in Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology. (2/13)
Los Angeles Times: Trump Officials And Mayor Garcetti Team Up To Fix L.A. Homelessness
Taking the next step in months of negotiations over ways to combat L.A.'s homelessness crisis, Mayor Eric Garcetti and U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson on Thursday announced the formation of a joint working group. Although much about the collaboration remains unknown, the mayor and secretary said their staffs would be working together to identify red tape and other impediments to getting people off the streets and housed quickly. (Oreskes, 2/13)
The Associated Press: Man Sued Over Iowa Sexual Arousal Study Ran Kansas Facility
A child psychologist facing a federal lawsuit in Iowa stemming from sexual arousal experiments he oversaw on residents at a state care center for people with intellectual disabilities conducted similar research in Kansas while running one of its state hospitals. The Kansas agency that oversees the state's hospitals says its initial investigation of sexual arousal research involving Jerry Rea in Kansas suggests that ethics guidelines and proper protocols were followed. (2/13)
The Washington Post: Joey Hensley Worried About Women Buying Tampons Tax Free
A Tennessee lawmaker is concerned that women would buy feminine hygiene products in bulk if the items were approved for an upcoming three-day, tax-free weekend. The legislation is part of a long effort to get rid of the "tampon-tax" on menstrual-related items, the Associated Press reported. (Beachum, 2/13)
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